I loved the movie, too, and even clapped out loud in the theater when “Bobby” finished his first open mic scene. Not embarrassing at all! 😄
We are again witnessing historical musical moments unfolding before our eyes, as I predict hindsight will reveal. These moments tend to come when society is at a crossroads. Cowboy Carter, IMHO, was a catalyst to big moments on the musical horizon. Beyoncé took the biggest commercial chance of any A-lister this century. Just as Bob did, she planted the seeds, planned accordingly, and then let loose at a cultural event: The Super Bowl. And the blowback was quick and severe— very similar to Newport. But when we look back, we’ll see that the gender, racial, and genre divides that she crossed will be a blueprint for other artists to venture where they dared not before. And that’s pretty damn exciting to witness.
I just heard that the Grossman Lomax brawl happened after the Butterfield performance not during Dylan. I don’t mind the switch especially as that was basically the Butterfield band without Butterfield or Elvin Bishop and with Al Kooper added. I loved the film. I almost never like music bippics or music docs either but that’s another story.
Loved the film too. It does show the Lomax / Grossman fisticuffs! They punch each other out and roll into a bush. What year was your dad's PhD? My mother was a grad student in English at Berkeley in the mid-60s, wonder if they crossed paths.
This statement really landed: "I’ve shelved my ego as a musician to be able to serve artists...If you can do that, it’s an incredible experience to realize an artist is truly special." So many young people want to create, but they also want to be stars. Not much has changed there, but an alternative life of creative service is rarely spoken about. You don't have to choose between being Salieri or Mozart. You don't have to settle for passive consumption either. You can create AND serve.
And that's a terrific review of the film despite your intentions.
Thank you for this. I came to Dylan by loving Joan Baez's music first--neither of my parents were into Dylan, but my mom had Peter, Paul, and Mary records and Joan Baez ones. In my suburban 80s high school, I didn't know anyone else who loved this music; it was wonderful to go to college and finally find some people who also loved this music.
I've really enjoyed the movie--primarily because of the music, but also because of the acting performances, the settings, and the general look. I've gone to see it twice, and I'll probably go again this weekend--mostly because I want to find a showing with a sparse audience so that I can sing along. How do you listen to Like a Rolling Stone or It Ain't Me, Babe through a good sound system and not sing along?
I'm reading Suze Rotolo's book now (finally! It's been on my radar to read for so long), and I'm really enjoying it. Though I get that people have complained that they could/should have done more, I appreciate how the movie does show what Dylan learned from the women in his life.
Also, Ed Norton made me love Pete Seeger even more than I already did. And the hand-knit sweaters he wore were gorgeous.
I loved the movie, too, and even clapped out loud in the theater when “Bobby” finished his first open mic scene. Not embarrassing at all! 😄
We are again witnessing historical musical moments unfolding before our eyes, as I predict hindsight will reveal. These moments tend to come when society is at a crossroads. Cowboy Carter, IMHO, was a catalyst to big moments on the musical horizon. Beyoncé took the biggest commercial chance of any A-lister this century. Just as Bob did, she planted the seeds, planned accordingly, and then let loose at a cultural event: The Super Bowl. And the blowback was quick and severe— very similar to Newport. But when we look back, we’ll see that the gender, racial, and genre divides that she crossed will be a blueprint for other artists to venture where they dared not before. And that’s pretty damn exciting to witness.
That’s a great take on Cowboy Carter and I hope you’re right!
Me, too! 🙂
I just heard that the Grossman Lomax brawl happened after the Butterfield performance not during Dylan. I don’t mind the switch especially as that was basically the Butterfield band without Butterfield or Elvin Bishop and with Al Kooper added. I loved the film. I almost never like music bippics or music docs either but that’s another story.
Loved the film too. It does show the Lomax / Grossman fisticuffs! They punch each other out and roll into a bush. What year was your dad's PhD? My mother was a grad student in English at Berkeley in the mid-60s, wonder if they crossed paths.
This statement really landed: "I’ve shelved my ego as a musician to be able to serve artists...If you can do that, it’s an incredible experience to realize an artist is truly special." So many young people want to create, but they also want to be stars. Not much has changed there, but an alternative life of creative service is rarely spoken about. You don't have to choose between being Salieri or Mozart. You don't have to settle for passive consumption either. You can create AND serve.
And that's a terrific review of the film despite your intentions.
Thank you for this. I came to Dylan by loving Joan Baez's music first--neither of my parents were into Dylan, but my mom had Peter, Paul, and Mary records and Joan Baez ones. In my suburban 80s high school, I didn't know anyone else who loved this music; it was wonderful to go to college and finally find some people who also loved this music.
I've really enjoyed the movie--primarily because of the music, but also because of the acting performances, the settings, and the general look. I've gone to see it twice, and I'll probably go again this weekend--mostly because I want to find a showing with a sparse audience so that I can sing along. How do you listen to Like a Rolling Stone or It Ain't Me, Babe through a good sound system and not sing along?
I'm reading Suze Rotolo's book now (finally! It's been on my radar to read for so long), and I'm really enjoying it. Though I get that people have complained that they could/should have done more, I appreciate how the movie does show what Dylan learned from the women in his life.
Also, Ed Norton made me love Pete Seeger even more than I already did. And the hand-knit sweaters he wore were gorgeous.